​'Soloing, 2019' was made especially for ‘Black Box’ Residency at The University of the Creative Arts, Farnham. The installation is named after a climbing term used to describe when one scales a wall, without a rope.

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Continuing my interest in suspension, gravitational pulls and that in-between space between fantasy and reality, I began to look towards the language of the climbing wall. I was interested in these synthetic climbing environments that would promote physical suspension. Primarily interested in the relationship between the body and these dynamic angular forms, the climbing wall has now become a common and playful way for people to negotiate their form, against a vertical plane. Intrigued by the organic shaped grips scattered strategically all over the wall, where something is always out of reach; it was thought that it would be interesting to translate this large-scale environment to a small, very reachable, contained box.

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Promoting a sense of escapism in-between a sci-fi set and a playground, I used translucent materials such as glass wax for the climbing grips. This helped to transfer the light from behind the wall, in order for the grips to glow and be seen as ethereal floating objects. I also placed a silicone mountainous polyhedron in the foreground, which omitted smoke via punctured holes - of which the pattern echoed the studded walls. Once the smoke machine went off every 30minutes, the work came to life and drew the audience in further.